VietNamNet Bridge - The northern mountain region is facing a harsh cold spell and has had heavy snowfall in recent days.

In Saoa town in Lao Cai Province and adjacent areas of Lai Chau Province, snowfall was about 3-5cms thick and in places it was even up to 10-20cm on March 16-17.

Thick snow covered 30-40cm of the national highway to Sapa, causing traffic to come to a standstill. Hundred of trucks, buses and motorbikes broke down on the highway.

Schools in Sapa town had to close and residents stayed indoors.

Meanwhile, many visitors flocked to the area to see the snowfall. The local authorities had to mobilize bulldozers to clear the roads.

Luu Minh Hai, director of the Hydro Meteorological Center of Lao Cai Province, said that he had never witnessed a snowfall in March in Sapa, only during December to February.

The Dong Van Stone Plateau in Ha Giang Province also had nearly three hours of snowfall and temperatures dropped to minus 4 degrees Celsius on March 16. Communes including Lung Cu, Sa Phin, Lung Thin and Thai Phin Tung in Dong Van District were blanketed with snow and ice.

The snowfall also covered some mountain tops in Cao Bang Province.

The National Hydro Meteorological Forecasting Center said that the cold spell, which caused the severe cold weather in the northern region, would prevail for a couple of days more.

Snowfall in Sapa town:

Source: SGGP/VNE/VietNamNet